Beneath Another Sky
by Catena
Summary: Canon AU. Verloren was resurrected. Teito had two choices: to let the world be destroyed or to rebuild it. To save them, him most of all, he chose the latter.
1. Prologue

Summary: Verloren was resurrected. Teito had two choices: to let the world be destroyed or to rebuild it. To save them, him most of all, he chose the latter.

* * *

**Beneath Another Sky**

_Commencing the Reconstruction _

_Reading Eye Compatibility rate_

_Compiling data_

_Synchronization 20% _

_Resonance 20% _

_Regulations completed_

_Amplifying frequency _

_Reading margin of error_

_Synchronization 60% _

_Resona—_

His closed eyelids trembled and he opened his bright green eyes slowly, calmly blinking any remnant of drowsiness away. The first thing he saw was the rays of sunlight flooding his surroundings through the medium-sized rectangular window. It looked like a small stark room. 'Where am I?' The sound of another voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Finally awake, I see." The low, slightly raspy voice came from his right; he turned his head to meet the other person's gaze. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine." The owner of the voice was a man, with black hair, wearing a fur-lined coat. He was seated on a chair, his long legs and arms crossed, his pose conveying an air of indifference. But his sharp dark eyes were regarding him analytically. "What's your name?" The man asked.

"Klein," he hesitated for a brief moment as he raised his body from the bed, "Teito Klein." Teito felt his vocal cords dry and his words came out rusty and unpleasant to his ears. Moreover, Teito was shocked to find the former Zehel, sitting near his bedside very much alive; that man was Guido, if Teito remembered well. It was strange for Teito that Guido would be the first person he'd see after waking up. How much had things changed? For a soul that had already passed away and sent to Heaven, was now amidst the mortal plane.

_Nothing will matter to be able to achieve the Reconstruction. Every key and its associated fragments will be used to create and preserve harmony. _

The Reconstruction was surely a terrifying and extraordinary mechanism.

On the other hand, Guido was here, and they were in an aircraft, that he identified with ease. From what he understood at first glance, the idea which formed in his head as a conclusion sounded highly strange perhaps, but likely nonetheless.

Air Pirates?

Teito tried to recall what it was that happened for him to end up here, with _them_ of all people. His efforts, to his dismay, were in vain. The teen's mind was stubbornly blank and the feeling was hideous and familiar. Why couldn't he completely remember this life's memories? It should be illogical for him to have only his past life's memories, but not all of the current ones. Between the unforgotten messy pieces of this life, the only thing he knew with certainty was of his status as a soldier of the Military, and being in this kind of place could only confirm the severity of his situation.

So, "Why am I here?" He let out the question that started to nag at him with reluctance. "Am I being held captive?"

The man's expression didn't reveal anything. "You don't remember what happened, at all?" 'Well, I half expected that.' The man thought. 'That Zaiphon powered explosion wasn't, by any means, a light one.'

Teito shook his head. "No, I don't." He said truthfully. Since more of this life's memories were refusing to come forth, Teito was a tad anxious of giving something else away. He had to tread carefully from here on out, that is if Guido had come back as Zehel, which was probably the case. No one was allowed to know anything.

"You're not a prisoner. If you were, you wouldn't be here, breathing. Believe me." Guido observed the boy on the bed with a keen glint in his eyes, trying to pick any sign of falsehood between his words or his body language. Amnesiac or not, he was still a soldier. However, Guido found nothing of the sort, and he had to give some credit to the boy: he didn't seem intimidated or disturbed by his stare unlike most (spineless) people were. It looked like this 'Klein boy' had a nice will of steel. Soldier or not, not many people had that.

The man decided to end the scrutiny and spoke at last. "You'd been sleeping for four days straight. As you probably know or have guessed by now, we're Air Pirates," making a gesture directed at Teito's room, he added, "and you're aboard the Aegis, consider yourself lucky." Maybe with the next statement he could break Klein's calm demeanor or so the pirate thought. "Four days ago, during an armed conflict, you, as a soldier of the Empire's Military, committed betrayal…by saving one of my own from certain death."

Teito wasn't sure if he ought to be taken aback at his betrayal, given what had taken place in his past. What truly caught his attention though was Guido's last sentence. "How so?"

"We were stationed at Floating Island F-35, Aeolia. There was internal strife due to the assassination of the current Mayor. Soon enough, the Military came and made an intervention, worsening matters as they always do. Do you remember some of that?" Guido inquired.

"I'm not sure. I—" Teito tried to search for useful leftovers in his mind, coming up with half blurred images. It wasn't entirely good, but at least he was getting something. Then, a clean vision surged unexpectedly to the forefront of his mind: '_"These are your orders!"'_ It was a young man with medium length dark straight hair, leading a squad_._ _'"Yes, sir!"' _

The squad he had belonged to was in charge of Major Suzunami. The same Suzunami from Antwort Teito had met in the past. 'Then, what about his twin, Yukinami?' Teito wondered. How many more surprises this world had in store for him? Cutting off additional thoughts, Teito said, "I could recall just now that we, the squad, were in charge of subduing the conflict and its rebels."

"Such a military-like answer, and it seems what you have it's not permanent, that's good. Simply put, the Military doesn't like us very much hence we became targets as well. One of my people got captured and—"Guido was going to explain further what had occurred but loud voices, which came from the outside of the room, paused the conversation. "Brat's causing trouble so early in the morning." He muttered as he rose to his full height and walked to the door opening it in a rough manner, his broad back concealed the figures on the threshold. "What's with this racket?"

There was a silence Teito considered amusing somehow. The silence was broken when a female voice spoke in an almost defensive tone. "I tried to stop him, but you know how he is."

"Well, what do you want? Make it quick. I hate to be interrupted."

"I…wanted to see him."

_That_ voice. It sounded younger but it was his. Teito clutched the white sheets until his knuckles turned white. His throat felt parched. It was—he was—!

"Frau, he isn't going anywhere. You just had to see him now?"

Alive.

"…"

"Are you blushing?"

"Never mind, I'm leaving."

"Wait! Now that you're here…"

Frau was alive.

Suddenly, the desire to cry out of pure and uncontainable joy was nearly too much to bear so he closed his eyes tightly. Teito was so glad, so happy for him. For his life, above all else, was the one Teito had wanted to reconstruct the most.

"Hey, are you ok?"

Teito looked up startled. Of course, he hadn't notice when Frau entered the room (dragged into it by Guido most likely) or when he'd gotten so close, enough for the weight of Frau's hands to be on Teito's shoulders. Soon, he realized that his astounded silence could raise awkward questions, and it wouldn't do to be this shaken. He had to regain his composure.

"I—I'm fine. Just a headache, that's all." Teito answered. Frau lifted his hands from his shoulders and stared at him, disbelievingly. "Then, that was a hell of a mean headache. You were trembling."

Maybe he should be embarrassed with that remark, but Teito was more occupied fighting with himself, with the smile that was threatening to show itself on his face. Because this Frau was different around the edges from the one he got to know, this one was younger and outwardly serious, even so, Teito found it pleasant to see he remained the same there, at the very _core_.

"We have painkillers, you don't want any?" Offered the woman standing near the door, she had closed it at some point.

"No, it's fine really." Teito replied to her. "Are _you_ ok?" He suddenly asked Frau and saw a frown make its way to the blond's face. Teito then realized it was odd to ask something like that in the way he did it; they didn't know each other, not in this world. One of the many prices to pay, he supposed. Also, he didn't know it would hurt quite a bit, to see that expression on Frau, even if Teito understood the reason. Teito was a stranger in his eyes. "Well, you have some bandages on you, so I thought…" He trailed off, uncertainly.

"Whatever." Frau shrugged and gestured at the tray of food he had left on the bedside table. "You should eat."

_You will not be able to remember until you find the trigger at the expected stage._

_If you find it, it signifies the timeline of the worlds, the old and the new, had been successfully synchronized into one. If you do not, one way or another, history will repeat itself. _

The last words Mikhail had told him.

It seemed Teito had found his _trigger_, and that would mean he had more than enough time to start from scratch.

Looking straight at Frau, Teito gave him a simple yet sincere smile and said, "Thank you."

While Teito ate and drank enthusiastically, blue eyes observed him with bubbling curiosity. "Aren't you worried about this?" Frau asked unable to maintain the silence any longer. He ignored the other two occupants in the room. His blue gaze centered on the boy before him.

"Should I be?" Teito responded between bites of his sandwich.

"Well, of course, do you think if they arrest you they'd held a trial for you or something like that? They'd off you." Frau was confused, 'what was wrong with this guy?' He thought. Any ordinary person in his situation would be apprehensive of the kind of outcome his spur of the moment decision had created. He didn't like Military people but this person just threw his life away, Frau hated it to admit it but he felt responsible for the soldier's predicament. Even if Frau still wanted to stubbornly believe it had been his problem alone to solve when he had gotten caught. He hadn't asked for anyone's aid, least of all from a soldier!

After swallowing the last bits of food, Teito said, "It'd be pointless to worry. I'm not scared." He drank a mouthful of apple juice and like an afterthought he stated, "Besides, I never did agree with the Military's way of doing things."

Frau barely knew this other boy, but he couldn't explain how his nonchalant attitude was ticking him off. "Then, why were you enlisted in the first place?" The flippant question got out of Frau before he could help it.

"Frau!" From the back of the room, came the cry carrying admonishment. "Don't be rude!" The woman said. Frau suppressed a flinch.

Teito didn't need to confirm if he had the mark on his body, he was just sure he had it. It was an element of his timeline after all. "A battle sklave doesn't have much room for options." Teito said in such a neutral tone as if he was talking about a trivial subject. But the unintentional stillness that followed was heavy and uncomfortable. Teito ignored it, he had learned so much in his past that those words didn't have any effect on him, not like they had used to. With help, he had become strong enough to accept that part of his life, that part of himself.

"Even so, Frau's right. Wasn't the Military your future?" Guido asked, trying to jump over the current gray mood which had filled the room.

"I wouldn't say that but it doesn't matter. I'd do it again anyways. " Teito looked at Frau at the end of his sentence. His words were said in an almost careless fashion, though his expression was serious, delivering a sense of promise behind it.

"What do you mean?" Frau didn't know what to make of this Teito Klein. It was unfair for a person close to his age to bewilder him this much.

"Save you. You were the one I saved, right?" Earlier, Guido was interrupted so he didn't tell the whole tale, yet Teito found no difficulty in filling in the blanks.

Frau couldn't avoid feeling stunned.

Guido observed the peculiar interaction between the two of them. The effect the Klein boy had on Frau definitely picked his interest. "Do you have any idea on what are you going to do?"

Teito had been at a loss the first time, and this time around was no different. Gazing at the window with uncertainty dwelling in his heart, he replied, "Not sure. You said it yourself, the Military had been my future but it isn't any more, so I guess I'll have to rediscover my place in the world…."

Once again.

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AN: I...well, I reread the manga and its oneshots and 'this' came out. Anyway, I was so interested in young Frau all serious and studious. It's an strange setting I know but the plot-bunny wouldn't stop jumping.

If I continue this (big If) Frau & Teito'll give me headaches (the 'romance' too :D). I'm really sorry if it seems OOC I tried to follow my intuition there -".

Thanks for reading and what do you think? Is this crazy?


	2. Aurora

**Beneath Another Sky**

**Aurora.**

Teito was left alone in his room. After Guido ended his brief account of the events at Aeolia, he said he had matters to attend to and took his leave. Frau silently followed him together with the beautiful woman, Magdalen; before leaving she had mentioned her name. And so, he was left alone with his thoughts as his sole company.

Taking a deep breath, he stared at his hands which were atop of his thighs. He stretched and relaxed his fingers, after a short while, protruding veins were being sketched on the surface of his hands. The veins surrounded a slightly sunken area of skin that parted to reveal the gleam of a red stone in his right hand, and in his left hand, a blue stone. Both stones had markings engraved within them.

_In the eventuality of the world being upon the brink of destruction, the activation of the world's last defense mechanism will be permitted. The power of the Eyes will have to unite._

"Eye of Mikhail. Eye of Raphael." Teito whispered. "If it wasn't because I have Raphael, I wouldn't have believed it worked."

"_As an Eye bearer, I, Ouka Rosaemanelle Barsburg, transfer the possession of the Eye of Raphael to Tiashe Warheit Raggs."_

_As an ambassador of the Heavens, I, Archangel Raphael, consent and bless the decision of my master. _

"I'm a _Wächter _until they come back."

The Reconstruction had been powered by Mikhail and Raphael. As a consequence, the Eyes were ordinary stones now. In spite of that, Teito had to become their keeper. By housing the stones in his body he had become an ad hoc guardian. The foreseen absence of the Archangels in the new world had demanded Teito's prior acceptance into the role. Teito didn't know how long would take the recovery of the Archangels in Heaven.

Reconstructing the world had allowed the soul of Verloren to be sealed in the bowels of the netherworld. His soul forever immersed in the bottomless obliviousness of the sea of _Lethe_. Afterwards, the reinstatement of the order of the Seven Ghosts had to be arranged. Naturally, the accomplishment of these objectives generated drastic alterations in the original timeline of the world. Thus a new world that proceeded from the foundations of the old had been created.

Teito didn't even dare to imagine all the possible changes this world could have. The few he had already experimented had been enough to daze him for a little while. He was curious though, about what had stayed the same in this heavily modified timeline.

The sound of someone knocking on the door drove him out of his musings. "May I come in?" Teito heard the muffled question that came from the other side of the door. The stones had sunk in his skin like the sun at sunset.

"Yes, of course, come in!" He replied. Teito saw the doorknob being turned slowly, and then, the figure of Magdalen appeared carrying in her hands a set of clothing.

"I brought you some clothes. I hope you don't mind but I discarded your uniform, it was all bloodied and torn." She said, placing them at the edge of the bed. Magdalen looked like she was going to say something else, but didn't know how to properly begin. She sighed and sat on the bed looking into the boy's eyes. "Frau's like a son to me." She said openly, ending her delay. "He has a noble heart and sometimes he gets into trouble because he just wants to help. I just—wanted to thank you. If it wasn't for you he would've—"

"He's fine and by your side now." Teito interjected. "So please, don't think about what could've happened that only brings bad and useless thoughts."

Magdalen was amazed by those words. "You're such a good boy." She affirmed.

The woman's statement caught Teito unawares. "How can you be sure of that? You don't know me…"

"I just can see it." She smiled warmly, while ruffling his hair. Her actions and the confidence behind her premature view of Teito's character put some color of embarrassment on his face. She laughed and said, "besides, not everyone would risk their life to save a stranger."

An abruptly remembered thread of moments wound about Teito's mind as if on a reel: fellow soldiers capturing a blond boy, threatening him, trying to force him to divulge what he knew. Frau's dogged resistance. The onslaught of a swarm of rebels; grenades thrown by unknown hands; cloudy outlines of people scattered amid the smoke and debris. Teito running towards a fallen boy, carrying him to somewhere safer until a Zaiphon projectile impacting upon the ground halted their flight; protecting him with a persistent blue ring of his Zaiphon; a shadowy shape of a man towering over them saying: _"You can let go now, I'll protect you both."_

The memories stopped the same way they had begun.

"Are you ok?" Magdalen asked, concerned. "I lost you for a few minutes there."

Teito looked at her. "I'm alright. I remembered some things that's all." He gave a rather brusque answer, just to block the way for possible questions. Then, in an attempt to change the subject, he asked, "where are we?"

Knowing the boy's aim all along she decided not to pursue the matter. "We're at the Seventh District." Magdalen said, detecting at the same time the surprise he wasn't able to hide. "Does this place have some meaning to you?"

What could Teito say at that? It seemed the Seventh District was a fixed starting point in his life. "Well, I—I'd like to visit the Church."

"Would you like to go there right now?" Without waiting for a response, she kept speaking in a cheerful manner. "You know what? Let's go! Take a shower and get ready, I'll wait for you outside!"

The suddenness of her invitation left him speechless. But it wasn't as if he was going to refuse. In fact, Teito could feel eagerness fueling his body. When he was given privacy, he showered in the room's adjacent bathroom, and then, dressed with the clothes Magdalen provided. He noticed the outfit was similar to the one he had used during his stay at the Hausen House.

Teito smiled.

Standing in the hallway, Magdalen sighed when she saw a boy running hurriedly towards her. The day was barely beginning and there wasn't any peace for her when that boy was on one of his moods. He was full of so much life and purpose that it was nearly frightening.

"Magdalen!"

"Guido's at the Church." She loved that boy. He was like a little brother to everyone. He was so eager to be recognized, to prove his value, to rightly win his place inside this family. A foolish boy, for he had already won his place long ago. The woman knew he belonged there, up in the sky; his dedication proved that.

"Now what, he already left."

She hid a smile at his disappointment. He followed Guido around like a lost puppy. It was incredible how much influence that man had on this boy, so much so, that it could be worrying sometimes. She didn't want Guido's (and the rest of the crew's) bad habits to be inherited by the boy; cigarettes, alcohol, erotic magazines and literature? Definitely, the most unconventional father figure.

"Teito and I are going to the Church." Magdalen said. "Come with us!"

"Wait a second! Why are you going somewhere with him? I don't like it." Frau wouldn't give his trust. He thought that even if sometimes people did good things it didn't mean the rest of their intentions were harmless.

Magdalen already had expected something along those lines coming from this boy. "Do I need to remind you what he did?"

"No." He curtly said.

She guessed he would always grudgingly remember. "Good, because I'll trust him for that very reason. I know you can't trust him yet, but you shouldn't be so quick to close your mind. You never know, you may find pleasant things. So, are you coming with us?" If her words didn't persuade him, the stare she gave did it.

"Fine, I'll go."

.:.

The trio strolled around the lively and busy streets of the District, until they reached the bridge that communicated the town and the Church. Teito seemed to forget about his companions and went forward, passing the archway at the end of the bridge with an excited jog. He descended the long and broad steep stairs that led him into the Central Square.

"Frau, look at him." Magdalen whispered.

It was hard to believe he had been a cold puppet clad in black and gold, a soldier of the Empire. It was hard to believe it when he displayed such a bare wonderment at the sight of the magnificent structure that was the Seventh District's Church.

'Is this his first time seeing it?' Frau thought.

The morning's coolness was lessening as the heat was gaining intensity; upon slim tall towers, bells were chiming noon. Teito was turning his head in any direction, just glancing around. He couldn't control the fondness he felt for this place, and he didn't care if it was evident. Before him, the large fountain glittered under the sun with overflowing and clear refulgent water on all sides. A soothing fragrance the air had, petals were dancing about gracefully. He watched children running, playing; sisters, bishops and volunteers doing chores; people resting, loitering or going to the Sanctuary to pray.

It was a view he once thought he would never see again.

"I haven't seen you before, is this your first time here?" A soft familiar voice said.

Teito turned around and the kind expression Bishop Labrador always wore was what he saw. Not only that though, just a few steps behind was the stern face of Bishop Castor. Teito's joyful smile seemed to surprise them a bit. "Yes, it is, this is a wonderful place. My name's Teito Klein, by the way."

Labrador returned his smile. "Nice meeting you. I'm Bishop Labrador and," signaling his companion, the Bishop added, "he's Bishop Castor." The one introduced as Bishop Castor only nodded in answer.

He was sure of it now, they gave him the same impression he had perceived with Guido, that meant Bishop Labrador and Castor had come back as Ghosts again.

"Since this is your first time visiting, take this as a souvenir," the kind Bishop gave him a tiny brown basket. "It's Blume cakes."

Teito lifted the basket's lid a little and he caught a honeyed scent that stirred the claws of hunger. "Thank you! Is this given to every visitor?" Teito asked.

"I was told a special guest might be coming soon, so I prepared that. I have a feeling they were referring to you." The Bishop said somewhat cryptically. The gentle swaying and humming of his flowers hadn't told him why this boy was special; "_greet the traveler like a friend"_ they had mumbled and then, they soon had quieted.

Teito didn't know what to say, for that was unexpected. Unexpected and strange, yes, but he didn't feel uneasy. The Bishops noticed that and it was Bishop Castor who took pity on him. With a faint smile he said, "well, Teito Klein, enjoy your stay. We must go; we have a meeting to attend."

"Yes of course, thank you again." Teito bowed.

The Bishops turned to their left and disappeared when they entered one of the many hallways of the Church.

Despite Labrador's departing comment he felt his heart lighter after seeing them.

Teito had wondered on the whereabouts of the other Ghosts like Lance, Kal or even Katsuragi; about _Father_, his whole family and the standing of the Raggs's Kingdom. He also had been thinking about Hakuren and…_Mikage_. Was he alright? Had he entered the Military Academy again? Teito didn't remember or he just didn't meet him. Either way, Teito firmly hoped he had stayed with his family. A part of him longed to see him, the other was simply afraid. Teito knew for sure his heart would never recover entirely of the events that had amounted to Mikage's passing; a blunt wound that still ached at times.

Teito sighed and stared upwards, at the sky.

And last but not least, there was Frau. 'Will this world be just as painful?'

Nearby, Frau observed him with Magdalen alongside him. What kind of thoughts that soldier had in his mind? What kind of hardships had he been through? His green eyes were mirrors reflecting a sharp sadness so deep and immeasurable, it was unbearable to see. Frau's feet moved on its own accord, leaving a startled Magdalen behind. They led him to the place where Teito was sitting, on the edge of the fountain. His mouth opened and blurted words he hadn't expected saying.

"Hey, are you going to stay there all day or what?" said Frau with his arms crossed and a frown on his face. "Let's not waste any more time. I'll show you around." He grasped one of Teito's wrists and pulled him to his feet.

"Have you heard about the legend of the Seven Ghosts?"

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AN: I guess I'll be writing more of this. I don't know exactly what I'm doing though but it's fun xD

Anyways, just in case: **Wächter** - Guardian, **Blume** - Flower (according to google translator :P)  
Verloren - I decided to take another course with him so, **Lethe** - Greek mythology. River of forgetfulness. (Amemiya and Ichihara love to use mythology so I'm doing that too xD)

-Random extra note (fangirl mode on): Almost everyone in the manga had their happy ending and what I mean is: Kuroyuri with Haruse. Hyuuga with Konatsu. Castor, Labrador and the other bishops together and unscathed (sort of). Then...then we have Frau and Teito the poor unlucky drama queen pair. It's so unfair! (fangirl mode off)

Thanks for reading! :)


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